SHAWNEE – The second weekend of Oklahoma Baptist volleyball action starts tomorrow at the Washburn Invitational in Topeka, Kansas. Apart from Washburn, there are three other teams OBU will match up with: William Jewell, Northwest Missouri State and Missouri Western State.
Competition starts against William Jewell on Sept. 8 at 9:30 a.m., with a later match versus the host Ichabods beginning around 5 p.m. Then on Saturday, OBU will face off against Northwest Missouri State at noon, with a final contest against Missouri Western State at 4 p.m.
Bison Notes
● OBU is off to a 1-3 start after last weekend's talent-filled SpringHill Suites Invitational.
●
Jill Leslie obtained a team-high 30 kills with a 2.31 kills-per-set average. She currently ranks second in the GAC in attack percentage (.319).
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Rylee Martin's 6.46 assists-per-set average is good for fourth in the league.
● Senior libero
Maci Langford also checks in at No. 4 in the GAC in digs per set (4.62).
● Also of note defensively, junior
Kenedy Houchin has a team-best 1.0 blocks-per-set average while Leslie has 10.0 total blocks.
● OBU's 3-0 win over Mississippi College last week was coach
Anna Howle's 375th career victory.
William Jewell Notes
● William Jewell is also off to a 1-3 start after the Kansas City Classic. The Cardinals' lone win was a 3-1 decision over Kentucky Wesleyan.
● Junior Bella LaPorta has gained 73 kills, averaging 4.87 per set. That average is sixth-best in D2.
● Samantha Thompson leads in assists (88) while teammate Jesa Wallace is not far behind (66).
● Alexis Nunn leads in digs, with an average of 2.93 per set. There are three others that are also contributing defensively with at least a 2.27 average: LaPorta, Thompson and Hannah Cope.
● Kitty Garrison has an average of 1.00 blocks per serve with a total of 15.0 blocks.
● Last season, the Cardinals posted a 13-15 overall record.
Washburn Notes
● Last week, the Ichabods flew to Lakeland, Fla., and went 2-1 at the Florida Southern Tourney. That included a 3-0 sweep of No. 6 (AVCA) Barry University.
● In the latest AVCA/TARAFLEX Division II poll, the Ichabods were ranked No. 17.
● Since 2021, outside hitter Jalyn Stevenson has acquired 694 kills with an average of 2.71 per set. Stevenson has also racked up 692 digs. A season ago, Stevenson was an AVCA All-American Honorable Mention selection.
● Washburn possesses two outstanding setters: Corinna McMullen and Sydney Conner. Over the last two seasons, each have attained at least 269 assists.
● Freshman Taylor Rottinghaus leads the team with 32 digs (4.57 per set). That mark is good for third in the MIAA.
● Last season, the Ichabods won the MIAA Tournament before falling in four sets to No. 6 Minnesota Duluth in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
Northwest Missouri State Notes
● Like William Jewell, Northwest played at the Kansas City Classic. The Bearcats went 3-1.
● The Bearcats are ranked No. 15 in the AVCA/TARAFLEX Division II poll.
● Gabrielle Gartner has acquired a team-high 42 kills while teammate Avery Kemp has the best average (2.90).
● Redshirt freshman Ella Caffery has paced the team with 136 assists. That's an average of 7.56 per set, a mark that's good for seventh in the MIAA.
● Defensively, Kyah Luhring has notched 74 digs with an average of 4.11. That mark is top-five in the MIAA.
● Junior middle blocker Abby Brunssen's 14.0 blocks and 0.78 blocks-per-set average is tops for Northwest.
● A season ago, the Bearcats went 24-7 and earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament where they fell in four sets to St. Cloud State in the first round.
Missouri Western State Notes
● The Griffons won three of four matches last week at the Illinois Springfield Tournament. One of those was a 3-0 decision over GAC institution Arkansas Tech.
● Senior middle hitter Danielle Moje has been a key factor offensively for Missouri Western. She has team-highs in kills (43), per-set average (2.69) and percentage (.341).
● Nessa Johnson's 7.94 assists-per-set average is tops for the Griffons.
● Anna Weberg leads with 62 digs (3.88 per set) while Johnson is averaging 3.13 per set.
● Both Lily Kurz and Emma Salker have tallied 15.0 total blocks so far for the Griffons.
● A year ago, coach Jessica Fey's team went 11-18.
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